Mohave County miner., 1887-04-23
IN THE HOLY CITY.
CHAT WITH AN OLD MISSIONARY
WHO SERVED IN JERUSALEM.

WIN OEHNE0 tN JEnOSNLEWs
Palestine Now . Very Insigaiacans Prov.
ines Of Very Iasisnincsnt Empire
Jerusalem Somewhat Modernised-Ns
Manufacture, no ASricuiturs.
Mr.. Thomson II Que OF the oldest Amcri
can missionaries to tho Holy Land now Iiy
ing, having gone 10 Jerusalem In 1874 for thu
American Board Of Commissioners for ForsigI
Missions. The gentleman Is Of large and vel
proportional figure, and considering his ad
yancei age he IL remarkably well preserved
phySically as well as mentally.
@Yes, am pretty well acquainted with Je
rtisaiem,n said Mr.. Thomson, aand with ths
whole Of Palestine. which. while IL was oiic
the center OF civilization and progress, l. now
very insignificant province Of veyy insig
niilcant empire
@How large city was Jerusalem when you
iirst went thcrcf"
II went to that city first fifty-t9o year,
ago, and then there was hardly house out
side Of the city walls, while the city gntes
we;p closed each evening aud no person could
get ont or In until morning. think IL con
tai1.d about D,o8 Inhabitants"
"Of course, tho city has no growth, except
In aIcf'
"Ycs, IT has a moderate growth. ] pre-.
same TIE city now counts 20, 900 inhabitants,
and Mi the oh restrictions about the city,
walls airl the closing of tlse city gntes are
resYl0.5aa y
What IA thcrc 10 attract nea settlers, and
who arc tliayp
~They are mostly Jews, AMI most OF tlt0ss
who coaiJ are old people who seek the city u
their fataaTs, to die a:ii he buricd there. sow
there ere a great many lionses, AM soine oi
thesn fine nDiern dwellings, on the west side
oi TIA city outshls Of to old walls. Th
housci are pretty, enthusiastically, and tliey
are ia most instances we.i furnished. wisr
t;ley lie they ere barie there, and the wboI.
dis of M1ant Oliset h fairly paved With the
graves Of buried Jews"
-2avei7
"Ytaa You know the Hebrews do not marx
the graves OF their dead with monuments and
upright headstones as we do. They place G
small slab or stone, appropriately carved, fat
wise upon the graves. That's why I say tht
sitls Of Mount Olivet Is paved.n
TIE cfrY SOMEWHAT aopEgsrzEo
as the city itseR at all modernszedf'
1Ycs, considerably. Iusi,le the walls, or H.
the old city. not Eiany changes have beer
made In the buildings, but tbs streets arc ke.a
cleaner, the native iuhabitants are mon
e.lsnnly End hospitablc Gi:i show more enter
pr.5a. Why, Just think OF It, the streets O.
Jerusalem ore lighted at night time hy oil
frnn .hc Pennsylvania oil wells. There arr
two o. three hotels thers kept by GertDairs
and AZ tell you, outsiie tho walls tho iiew
residences u Hebrews who have located tberS
maze the landscape look quite moderr. and
p.sssifls. Then there are Russian and Ar,n,.
niaIi ceryerlts thsre--not one builiing, bot
,si,l.si.liid systGns Of buildings well worth Wis
niugr
Allow about tho roadways In that y'cin.tyf
"iifH.y are poor enough now, bot they are
s1perb compared with the roads when frs;
vent there. The country Is very mouataii
oas, and II Is undsr the rule OF the Turkish
government That tells the whole story, faa
Turkey was born TO retard all progress and
kill all prosperity. When sent there IL was
diiiicult matter to reach Jerusalem ON mule
or donkey back. or even Oh foot. Now thcr
is a sort Of carriage road from Jafra to Jeru
saicm-about forty miles-over which
snail vehicle, a kind Of stage or omnibus,
carries visitors
"How do all tho tourists and pilgrims &c,
10 the Holy Cityf'
Most Of the pilgrims cuine In tbs spring
Of the year, either OH foot or on mules and
donkeys. The European aud American Wis
itors generally get there by way. Of Jafra and
tho carriage road speak OF. But that eiaSs
is only drop in the BUCKET. Tho crowd
comes In the spring Of tbs year, as say.
a:d they come chiefly from Russia and E,t
rolr;an Turiry. They come by the hun
.iFtvt s---s
~,iDg are they gcso-a ~ lated ia the two
r IlT1, s;aaI hoaSI3.
".Ti:e p!..Ti:.lB G:c a". oIunIpiated 10 til,
cuar"Its, agi bin: teas with Item and
ca!Gp ort ia the Give ORCHARDS roundabout
That's why t.iey coin wiIen they do. for a'
that season of the year it i; simply delightful
In the open nir, day or night"
NO nASUYAcTUaEs, NO AGRfcULTCRE.
is tliere anything 10 make Jerusalem
very large cityH
historical interest. IL has 40 manufactures
except the manufacture Uf relies from Woo
from the Mount of Olives and mother o.
pearl taken from tho Red sea. These arr
made quite extensively, and they are very
readily sold at good prices TO Russian pill
grinis."
There Is no asricnlturer
Nothing to fIeal If, though there might
be, as the country Is limestone country
At Hebron there is glass nanufactory
where they make finger rings and other orna.
ments OF glass. There Is some little traffic isr
wool and olives, but outside OF these tIiings
the products Of the costry are very small
Tie harvest Is the coming Of the pilgrims,
each spring.
The fees for pointing out objects Of in.
tcrest to visitors must amount 10 consider,
able.'
Not 50 very much, but enough to help TIM
natives to live"
Il suppose they authenticate ell tie points
Of interest, relics, etc.r
"Wcll, geographical points like the Mount
Of Olives, Bethlehem, Bethany, Hebron, ETC.,
are established as to authenticity, beyond
question There can lie no doubt that the
great mosque Of Omar Is built on the site Of
Solomon's temple, near Nablut. But when
In one Of the converts at Bethlehem they point
10 q star In the floor and say that our
Saviour was tor1 on that sIsot--wel1, think
there Is room for doubt and at the same time
Iconeiude that It Isn't necessary TO worry my
mind over it. They show you the sepulcher
where Christ was buried You are somewhat
impressed with the idea that the location has
been made to suit structure of different
style and more recent date than tia. on
which the burial occurred. However, In the
atmosphere OF that locality one docs not feel
like studying az TO the exactness Of little de.
tails like that The authenticity OF the placs,